espresso beans aren’t really a thing… just get beans within 5-21 days of roast date. Don’t buy any beans without a roast date. Don’t be scared of light or medium roasts. Get a .1 gram scale. AWS has a good, cheap one on Amazon. Acacia is cool too. Grind retention is a thing. Consider running a few grams through the grinder before grinding your weighed beans. there are so many variables with espresso… I would recommend getting a tamper that clicks when the appropriate pressure has been achieved. Reduces a variable when starting out. make sure you warm your cup and the the machine has had time to warm up before you pull your shot. look up WDT and RDT stir your espresso before you taste
You worried about all the moving parts? — Not so far. Yes it’s a good bit of plastic but it’s pretty well made. I bought it with my Amex I think. So it should have some extended coverage hopefully? What’s your thoughts on the grinder alone? — the grinder is surprisingly good. Better than Commandante or Lagom Mini I’d say. It seemingly can do espresso grinds for medium to light medium but I haven’t tried it yet. Hopefully soon. Have you used the pods any? — yes - a few of them. They’re convenient but not that economical. It’s mostly for the missus so that it’s easy peasy for her to brew a cup while I’m not around. What kind of other dripper(s) did you use with it? — I used the Orea a few times but I’ve stuck with their Omni dripper. with the most recent update, I have 3 recipes saved up on the machine - 1 suited for light / ultra light washed, 1 for anerobics / naturals and 1 for iced coffee. It’s even more convenient now as this has taken away the need to have a phone around. i did 3D print a rig for a melodrip screen over the dripper to make the flow uniform.
Do not recommend Breville Smart Grinder Pro for espresso if you go electric. Get something in the range above that at least if it’s in your budget. Especially if you think you might take on light roasts shots after getting medium-dark roasts down. https://www.timemore.com/products/timemore-electric-coffee-grinder-sculptor-series I’ve been down between getting this or the one a step up, or the Xbloom. Think I’m sticking with the Xbloom.
I always weigh post-grind, but you don't really get retention with hand grinders in my experience. Used to get a ton with my electric though
I’ve enjoyed sette 270 grinder and Breville infuser for years. I thought about double boiler upgrade recently. But decided I love the lattes I make now. Wait for a machine to die at this point.
Xbloom studio has been ordered Lady’s reaction was “where are you putting all this” and “I’ll just throw out my nespresso then” Ask for forgiveness not permission
nothing over 100 probably, I buy good quality stuff from local coffee shops for just doing drip coffee in my coffee ninja every morning
Baratza encore is a little over that range, but you can find deals. I used it for aeropress for a long time and it is solid. Has a fairly simple burr upgrade you can do later if inclined, which makes it functionally like the Virtuoso. It’s been around a long time and is probably still the best budget grinder. Probably not much experience in this thread with sub $100 burr grinders, but I would just pick something with name recognition and a good warranty if you do that way. Oxo, bodium, etc.
Doesn’t look like baratza sells refurb anymore. Sub $100 might be tough but for $150 the encore is so solid. If you get the upgrade itch you can buy the virtuoso burrs for it down the road.
Would look at this https://www.oxo.com/conical-burr-co...huhbIiEntHjn2bLd3h7n7tdPyq_ZxcG5un4B9QM8y8rLO looks even cheaper on Amazon but I try not to patronize them.
I'd definitely budget the extra $50 for the Baratza Encore. Future Proof: Can upgrade burrs down the road Customer service superb & replacement parts readily available
I still have my Encore going on about 10 years, upgraded from it about 4 years ago. I still use it for batch cold brew and take it on long vacations when I can/need. If my Niche broke I would be fine with it for a little while for everything but espresso. Apparently Baratza was bought by Breville a few years ago.
While I'm sure the encore is better, I really like the capresso infinity in the sub 100 space. Gifted mine to the in laws and it is still working great after 12 or so years.
enjoy! It’s a fun little machine. Here’s a list of crowdsourced recipes, although the app now shows shared recipes as well. https://false-fragrance-c1b.notion.site/xBloom-Recipes-9dd97f56dd2048259bd773ba13110c02 I mostly use the Aviary / Ferran recipe with slight tweaks here and there. https://share-h5.xbloom.com/?id=xkPw3n6tW9sUBUHBkRcysA==
I’ve had this one for 4+ years. No complaints. Got it for about $70 from bed bath and beyond. It’s fine for pour overs.
I went ahead and got the Be Bright xpod pack and The Future Watermelon Candy from Black & White as well
I'd be curious to hear about the watermelon. I almost bought it last order but decided to go with some gesha instead
This one is an Xbloom exclusive from their “The Future” series that’s about modern processing and the notes they bring. https://www.blackwhiteroasters.com/search?q=the+future https://xbloom.com/products/the-future-xbloom-exclusive
I've been ordering exclusively from b&w for the last 6 months or so and I've gotten a future on every order. Loved almost all of them
Great website if you’re into the fine details and science behind it. Warning, it gets very dorky About to try the V60 recipe with a Sey Ethiopian that I just cannot dial in https://coffeeadastra.com/
The biggest game changer for me, mentioned on the site, has been the utilization of distilled + Third Wave Water instead of filtered water. It’s made a dynamic difference to my brews across all methods
Depending on your local water, it’s massive. My water wasn’t too bad pH and TDS wise but it was still noticeable. I didn’t mind the added cost so much as have to pay more attention to water usage. I love dumping a bunch of heated water into my switch. With 3rd wave I was measuring water in instead of using 900ml every go.
Yeah, I'd been using filtered water - almost immediately noticed the improvement. I'm definitely more aware of water waste, due to the minimal, but extra cost.
You can make the tww packets pretty cheaply/easily iirc. I never really noticed a difference...I didn't even make it through a box
haha, definitely. Mostly the distilled water - started just buying 2-3 each trip to Publix, to avoid running out
Never been in this thread, probably never will be, although I enjoy a good cup. Just reading this page was like a different language.
We can get you started just improving whatever brew method you currently use, and probably won’t cost too much, then slowly Spoiler
I like to dilute TWW for espresso at least. Full stick of TWW is too hard imo. I use lotus drops for pour over. theres a website with water recipes I have bookmarked on my computer. I’ll post it here when I’m at my desk. if you really want to go down a rabbit hole, Gagne’s physics of filter coffee is very well regarded. I have it on my kindle but never managed to make a dent
I'll stick to my drip machine for now and enjoy my occasional Onyx visits in NWA. I will for sure eventually move into the poor over game.
Whole beans and even a cheap burr grinder will help you get the most from those Onyx beans with the same dripper. Grinding right before brewing is ideal. Would be a big difference Or you could spend a little more go ahead and get a grinder that would be ready for pour over too.
Oh I'm sure. There's a place in town that uses the Onyx beans. A couple local roasters as well. I've just enjoyed some of their special beans when I've visited. We are moving late spring, so by summer I'll be ready to start making some upgrades i think.